New Rating System
Ask and you shall receive- I'm sure most of you received the Tauck email about the new Activity & Pace ratings that will begin with 2027 trips. Each has 5 levels and the descriptions of each have a lot more detail. Of course, the problem with many similar ratings scales, there will always be people who deceive themselves as to their own ability. See the link for details. (link is also in email)
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Comments
One issue that I think needs to be specified is tours that involve stairs with no handrails. There are many of us that can handle most terrain encountered on Tauck tours, but cannot easliy navigate stairs that don’e have handrails.
How about the bath tubs with tall walls. I am 5’2 and shrinking and those are a no no. I always ask for a separate shower
It's your spine (upper body) that compresses, not your leg bones.
That may be true, but my trousers got too long. I always wore a 34 inch inseam until I started walking on the cuffs. Now I wear a 32 indh inseam. I was 6 foot 3 inches when I played basketball in high school. I am now six feet even.
Talking about Choc’s bath. We had a sunken bath tub in our master bedroom until I fell into it and broke my neck. The same injury that Patton had that killed him. I got lucky. No sunken bath tub anymore. It is now a walk in shower. Actually, he had a fracture of C3 and C4, I only had a cracked C3. It was pretty messy but sheets are easy to replace.
I gravitate to stairs with handrails. If I don't have handrails, I have the sensation of falling whether I do or I don't. It has to do with depth perception.
Rule of thumb: after 50, always hold on.
Tauck has to make sure that they and their travel agent partners stress these levels when someone books a tour. I’m not sure it may make a difference to what seems to be an escalating problem of people going on tours when they are in no way up to it.
There are several solutions, the easiest thing sending people home if they are impacting the progress of the tour. And publicizing more that this does happen. We traveled with a company years ago who had someone who could not walk on a very active tour, they impacting it greatly for the rest of us Shame, they lost us on our first tour with them, and sometimes we take six tours a year.
Or maybe provide a few very laid back tours for people with limited stamina….like the Roam tours without the high level activities but keep the multi day stays in the same hotels with an emphasis on relaxation.
Sending them home seems a bit harsh, British. Perhaps a "This activity is too strenuous for you. You need to sit this one out" is better.
Some companies do send people home, I’ve read forums where people have witnessed it.
Who determines who is to be sent home, when/where, and using what criteria? That could really put a TD on the spot!! Sending people home could also get expensive for Tauck unless the customer pays and it is so stated in the contract of carriage and/or covered by the insurance.
Though I think it is absolutely necessary, that course of action is a tough one from a customer relations point of view-
"Tauck, the tour company without a heart." It could be a publicity nightmare, "Breaking New: Tauck unceremoniously kicks sweet, gentle, terminally ill grandma off tour for no good reason. She spent her life savings on the trip, but was forced to forego a once-in-a-lifetime chance to visit her family's ancestral home and miss what would have been the first and last opportunity to meet her previously unknown, separated-at-birth, but dying twin sister. Film at 11:00."
Alan - loved your comment, so very true, I don't think Tauck should send anyone home, perhaps a choice for a different excursion or sitting one out.
I'm a hater of the high bathtubs, difficult to get in and out. I always ask at check in if there is a room with a walk in shower available.
The new tour pacing and activity levels explains why, when I booked the Northern Spain tour for May 2027, the Tauck agent strongly emphasized the amount of walking required over uneven pavement. Fortunately, we are very fit in our mid-70s, and walking is not an issue, at least not yet, lol.
Me too. I hate tub showers. Getting in and out is a problem and the bottom of the tub is often curved making it difficult to stand in.
I always ask for a walk in shower, also.
I think most everyone on the Forum loves to travel and as changing physical challenges impact our lives, it can be hard to give up something you love - it is almost a grieving process. I had a heart attack in June and received my doctor's OK to do our previously booked Impressions of the Seine tour (September) and I kept up fine. I am having surgery to have a brain tumor (likely benign) removed next week. We already had two trips booked for 2026. If the tumor ends up to be malignant, we are canceling our trips. If not - and barring unexpected complications - we will try to go. If necessary, we will skip excursions that seem beyond our abilities. After these two trips, we know we need to stay closer to home and look more critically at tour ratings. I certainly don't want to impact the ability of others to enjoy their trip, but I do think it is important to acknowledge it can be difficult to come to terms with changing physical conditions. It is a process. Like so many things in life, there is a delicate balance we need to strive to achieve.
Good wishes coming your way!
Accepting not being able to travel so much is like knowing when it’s time to give up your drivers license. Very hard.
How many of us have had knees or hips replaced, so we can continue to travel?
Not yet! Keeping my fingers crossed.
cvc...sending good vibes and healing wishes across the miles.
Thanks for the good wishes!
I wish you the very best, CVC. I hope all your medical issues come out well and you're able to travel for many years.
Thinking of you for a speedy recovery. I took my first senior pickleball lesson (a.k.a.”cripple ball”) 3 weeks ago and not even 5 minutes in, I fell hard. I’m pretty agile and active, but I fell and saw stars and then beyond the stars. I have an MRI soon.
Time marches on. I put my sister to rest last week, and we say goodbye to another friend tomorrow. Every time this happens I book another trip. Almost all of my Naval Aviator buddies are gone. There is no point in leaving sights unseen. (;-) I have four trips booked right now.
cvc, wishing you the best. Sealord, may your sister’s memory be a blessing.
cvc - I wish you all the best as you face your medical challenges.
And you as well, OurTravels34.
Condolences to Sealord. My philosophy is to always face our losses by embracing life. I am glad you are doing that.
I will tell this story only because some of you might find it interesting. There is a video online about Arthur Tauck senior’s first tour that was motivated in part by his business of selling ‘coin drawers’. Anyway, his first tour included the Mohawk Trail, which is a beautiful drive through Massachusetts. As a child of five or so my parents frequently took us from Chicago to Massachusetts along the Mohawk Trail, and I once had a picture of myself and my sister dressed in the same matching outfits in front of the Wigwam restaurant at one of the peaks along the Mohawk Trail. This was before the interstate highway system was built, so if you want to see it you need to avoid the Mass. Turnpike. It is a beautiful drive. My sister once saved me from drowning at the pool at the Arrow Cabins on the Mohawk Trail . It would not be a Tauck destination … definitely not the Fairmont.
Thanks for the story SeaLord. We”ve lost several young friend this past couple of months. Have six tours booked, It’s great to be able to look forwards to adventure and hoping for continued health.
There are so many things in life to look forward to and most of us, if not all, have more years behind us, than we do in front of us. It is an honor to look back at our lives and our memories. I try not to stare at the challenging and hardship times.
OurTravels34, my friend broke her wrist 10 min into her first pickleball lesson. Hope everything turns out ok.
And wishing a speedy recovery and good news to cvc.
Sealord: It sounds like you were very close to your sister. So sorry for your loss.
Life is full of surprises, not all of them pleasant. I'm happy to see Tauck's new rating system, but we sign up for tours so far in advance. Who knows what can happen between now and 2027, when I am already signed up for one tour and looking at others. I surely hope that Tauck continues to be supportive about any changes we need to make in our tour selections.
I'm sorry for your loss, Sealord. It's hard losing those close to us.